Gypsum building block



Febf 2s, 1928.

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/J /Q/g jf C PAYNE GYPSUM BUILDING BLOCK Flled May 28 1925 Patented Feb. 28,y 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CALEB P-AYNE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIG'NOR TO GYPSU 4ENGrINEERINGt &'MANU FACTURING COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

` GYPSUM BUILDING BLOCK.

application and may 2s, 1925. serial No. eases.

The obj ect of this invention is to provide a gypsum building block for building purposes generally,`and which can' be advantageousl used in place of brick terra cotta 6 tile an i other materials for backing up stone andother walls, and also iln' place of metal or other tile or forms used in making cement floors.

Another object of the invention is to pro-- 10 vide a strong and substantial building block, light in weight, which can be made of uniform size and laid with a smooth plastering surface, thereby dispensing with the necessity for a rou h plaster coat.

vAnd a furt er object of the invention is to make a buildin block of gypsum stucco, which is inherent y insulating, and to provide the block with -a great number of comparatively small parallel relation t rough the block, the ends of which erforations will be closed by contact of t e perforated faces of the block with plain surfaces, or by mortar used in layin the blocks one upon the other, whereby t e erforations constitute dead air spaces and increase the insulating properties of the block.

And a still further object of the invention is to facilitate the manufacture of gypsum- 3 building blocks by providing the block with a large number of comparatiyely small arallel perforations exten ing throughthe block, whereby the block will dry quickly because of the large surface area ex osed.

In the accompanying drawings ustrat'- in the invention v ig. 1 is a perspective view of a block. Fig. 2 is a fra mentary view of a wall' composed of the b ocks, Y *0 Flg. 3 is a sectional view illustrating a cement floor made' with the blocks; and' Fig. 4 is a detail view showin a block like that of Fig. Al-but on a sma ler scale and with the perforations sealed at their 5 ends. i

The block 5 is made of gypsum stucco and it is rovide'd with a great number of perforations 6 vextending in parallel relation i i :through the block from one face to another.

5 vi: can this a perforated block and I mean by this to distinguish it by reason of the large number of comparatively small erforations from tile and other blocks w 1ch -have one or severalflarge openings therein. -lSuch tile or other blocks are common artierforations extending in.

cles of commerce to-day, but they are entirely'diierent from my block in essential respects,\both in construction and in uses, and I think this is well indicated by the term perforated as I use it. This term also'distinguishes my improved block from blocks which might be provided with such irregular* openings as are found inspon e or sponge rubber because a block made li e a sponge or sponge rubber would not have the stren th and stability ofmy perforated block. l he perforations may be Yinch or 3/8 inch in diameter' and the walls between the holes may thin downto inch or 1/8 inch. I have made the perforations of unii form size and have arranged them in regular rows, blt it may be found convenient and desirable for some purposes to vary the size of the openings in a block or toarrange them otherwise than in regular rows. The walls of the perforations form arches which coo crate with each other and make a block which isl strong and' substantial and has relatively great crushing strength.\ This block is far better adapted for use as a' filling material in backing up walls, as forms -for makin cement floors, and for other purposes than t e materials now used, because it can be` made' of uniform size. and sha e., its strength as compared with its weig t, its superior insulating properties, and the plastering surface whlch it supplies.

In building a wall 7 I prefer to lay the blocks one upon the other with the perforations running vertically through the blocks.

, It is possible, of course, to stagger the blocks so lthat the perforations of`--each block willV be sealed, or substantially so, at their ends by adjacent blocks, but I find it more practical to lay the blocks in gypsum mortar 8 which will seal. the perforations besides holding the blocks in place.

In' building a cement floor 9 the blocksy will be supported by form work like tile are-now commonly supported, and the ce- 'ment floor built thereon with the blocks seated between the beams 10 and forming a plastering surface 11 flush with the surface of the beams. The gypsum blocks constitute a substantial insulatingl rotection for the cement floor since it is we l known that the insulating property of psum stucco is many times greater than t at of cement..

- I prefer `that the perforations should run horizontallyin the' blocks in floors,

but this is Inot absolutely :iecessary since I the plaster coat will seal the lower ends of blocks are used in buildi the perforations, if they run vertically.

The block is highly desirable as a building material because it can be made to uniform size and shape, with smooth surfaces and' be laid or built upto rovide a smooth plastering surface. It isa so important because, being free fpom metal or other forms of reinforcement, it can be easily cut or sawed to any size or shape as may be desired. By reason of its light weight, and comparatively low cost, it can be used with great satisfaction in building cement floors, not only because it constitutes a form which can be easily handled and :arranged in place, but because of the advantages which it presents as a permanent partvof the Wall, notably its insulating property and the plastering surface which itv affords. This makes a superior floor without increasing the cost materially, if at all.

The great number' of perforations, which may be said to be linely'divided and widely distributed, increase the exposed surface of the block to such an extent that it will airdry rapidly, and therefore can be made quickly and at `comparatively low cost.

This is an important feature because it eliminates the necessity for kiln drying, insures uniform drying throughout the body of the block,v and makes it possible to produce a block inv short time, therebyl at a comparatively low cost.

I have described how the perforations in the blocks are sealed at their ends when the a wall and in floor work, and it will be understood vthat the mortar used in setting up the blocks will almost always accomplish the purpose of sealing the perforations at their ends. It may be desirable for some purposes, or `to absolutely assure sealing of theperforations, to apply a light coat of gypsum mortar. or other suitable material to the perforated faces of ythe block to seal the block in the manufacture thereof, in a somewhat 'similar manner to the application of gypsum mortar to the block in laying a wall. Andit may be found expedient to make a block as shown in terminating at 12, adjacent to one face of the block so that they will be sealed at this end, after which the other ends ofthe per- Fig. 4 with the perforations.

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margins with Vperforations throughout its body orone or more solid sectionssuch as 14; may be provided tov increase the strength inccases where it may be desirable.

I employ cores for making the perforation's', and have -found that the' kcores can be located very closely together, and thus make a block with a great number of comparatively .small erforations very close to each other; but do not wish jto be restricted to any particular size or number of perforations in such a perforated block as I have heretofore described, and Ireserve the right to make all. such changes in the use of the inventionas may be covered by th following claims. claim: i

1. A gypsum buildin blocl: having a rec- -tangularbody witlim titudinous comparatively `small erforations extending `completely throug the block and separated from each other by comparatively thin walls, each perforation being separated from the others and .of such size and so spaced as to occur at relatively close intervals to occupy a substantial portion of the surface area v,of the said body.l

2. A gypsum buiidingbbiock having a @uit` stantially rectangular ody with multitw dinous perforations closely arranged and separated by relatively thinzwalls to produce a. honeycombed block, Lin which the perforations occupy a substantial portion of the surface area of the block;

3. A gypsum block comprising a substantially rectangular body having two series of perforations separated by a web extended across the face of the block, each of said series of perforations comprising a multi-l tudinous number of small substantially circular openings separated and dened by comparatively thin walls, such perforations i being of such' size in proportion to the block asto comprise approximately one half .of the cross sectionalarea thereof, said' forations being in staggered relationship.

caLEB PAYNE.

per.. l 

